Mercy
by CatGirlFireflare
Summary: Chirin was all alone- the sheep did not accept him and now he had nobody to turn to. He'd killed the Wolf king, who had raised him and taught him to kill. Maybe someone else can teach Chirin to live. Maybe another wolf.
1. Chapter 1

**Hello, I'm CrazyCatGirl, and I've thought for a while that the 'Ringing Bell' Universe needs more FanFics. SO, here we go! This takes place slightly after the movie. Enjoy!**

A large brownish blur shot through the forest, closely followed by a long, dull reddish streak. Snow drifted slowly through the branches, glowing softly in the nighttime darkness. In front, the brown one slipped and tumbled to the ground, its thin hooves splashing through the slushy snow around a half-frozen stream.

The reddish one, a lean she-wolf with golden eyes darting after the deer, sped up. The deer, well past its youth and tired from the chase, managed to leap to the side just in time to avoid a fatal bite to the upper spine.

The wolf's gleaming fangs still slit a deep gash in the deer's shoulder though. A small spurt of blood spattered the wolf's muzzle and seeped down the weakened deer's flank, staining her fur and a patch of snow dark red.

The deer let out a moan of terror and stumbled away, limping only slightly in her race for life. With a growl, the wolf followed, darting beneath fallen trees that the deer leaped over. The two rounded a bend on the side of the mountain, both slipping a little in the snow.

A strange clatter, like icicles clinking together, sounded from the ground as the deer sprang past. The wolf hesitated for a moment, surprised by the noise and uncertain.

Food+risk or no food+no risk? She had little time to consider what to do, since she was going too quickly to stop... or so she thought.

For the briefest instant, as the she-wolf landed for another leap she noticed that the ground beneath her front left paw felt odd- smooth and cold like ice. But she had lesss than a fraction of a second to consider it, for in that instant there was a loud clank, and something cold and sharp snapped shut around her leg.

The she-wolf yelped as she fell, sharp teeth biting into the limb and yanking it back. She howled in surprise and pain as a fiery throbbing sensation filled her left shoulder. She stood up again and pulled back, but a sharp pain in her injured leg, just above the ankle, made her stop.

Acting impulsively wasn't going to work in this situation, she knew, so she'd have to think it through carefully. She was stuck, in pain, and had no chance of catching up to the deer. She had to get away. The burning ache in her entire left leg made it hard to think straight, though.

Cautiously, she pulled back again, and then held back a whimper at the agony in her shoulder. She couldn't get it to move it at all, and the limb- held between the metal teeth of some crescent-shaped thing- hung limply.

The she-wolf took a slow deep breath and let it out. Her shoulder was dislocated, and before she could figure out this horrible metal trap, she'd have to fix the joint. This was going to hurt, she knew.

She sniffed the ground around the trap, checking for more. When none were found, she slowly stepped around it- not using her left leg- so that she was directly over the trap.

Then, clenching her teeth, she threw herself forward, letting out a pained howl as the movement yanked her limb back again. This time it slid the shoulder joint back into place with a scrape and an equally horrible flash of pain.

'Which one's worse,' she thought to herself with gritted teeth, 'A broken limb or a dislocated one?' Broken was worse, she decided grudgingly, since it took much longer to heal. But a dislocated limb was still plenty painful.

After a couple seconds she stepped back and tried moving her shoulder. It moved with a bit of an ache, but not quite as badly now. Good. Now she could focus on the worse problem.

The gray metal trap was attached to round metal pieces with holes in the center, all interconnected. This string of metal rings was attached to a short but thick stick that was half-buried in the ground. The blunt top of the stick was straight up and thicker on top.

Metal was strong, the wolf understood, stronger and much harder to break than bone or wood. She would have great difficulty gnawing through it, if she could at all.

And, by the faintly lingering stench, she knew humans had put this thing here- which meant they'd be returning eventually to see if it had caught anyone. So she didn't have much time to attempt chewing through the nearly indestructible gray material.

'Metal's too strong,' she decided, 'even the thin parts. For now, go for the wood.' She bent down- difficult to do on only three legs- and bit it. Ugh, it tasted of human! The she-wolf grimaced, but bit it again, harder. She moved her head back and forth, grating her teeth against the wood.

Thin bits of it pricked her lips and gums, causing her to wince. But she kept at it, now shaking her head back and forth as she would to the leg or neck of a deer. The metal around it hurt her jaws, and more splinters pierced her mouth, but she simply closed her eyes and kept going.

Her left front leg still hurt abominably, from the sharpness and weight of the metal trap. She tried resting it on the ground, but the metal teeth only pressed harder into the underside of her leg.

She kept gnawing at the stick, and even heard it creak faintly once or twice, but it did not break. Frustrated, she grabbed at it with her teeth and tried to yank it out of the ground. But she stumbled, falling on top of her bleeding front leg with a yelp. The wood was buried too deep, and with one front leg hurt, she couldn't get enough leverage.

She couldn't bite through it, at least not for some time. But maybe she could dig it out, and find some way to rid herself of the metal later, someplace safe. The wolf reached forward with her injured leg to dig at the stick, but the shifting of the metal teeth in her flesh was so painful she could barely move her toes.

So she lay down and scraped at the ground with her uninjured paw. It was slow work, and after a few minutes she'd made only a small hole. She placed her jaws around the stick and pulled again. It seemed to shift a little, but not nearly enough for her to pull it free.

The she-wolf growled softly. She had much work ahead of her. And since she had no idea when the humans would return- to kill her and take her pelt, no doubt- she'd have to work faster too.

**It gets better soon- or at least I think it does. And worry not, everyone's favorite homicidal sheep-goat shows up soon too!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Greetings! Much of this is already pre-written, just to let ya know.**

Carefully the she-wolf stepped forward and placed her injured paw on the ground, wincing and gritting her teeth, then put weight on it. She let out a whining yelp at the pain that shot through it like a bolt of lightning.

She kept standing on it until she could bear it- that is to say, it was still excruciating but she was able to think beyond the pain... _Barely_.

Then she lifted one hind leg and scraped and scraped at the dirt around the accursed stick. The pressure on her paw was agonizing, but focusing on the digging helped. She tried pulling the stick out again after a few moments, but the result was the same as before.

So again, she dug at it. This time she rested on her hind legs and dug at the ground with both front paws. It was torture to even move her left paw, or tense up a single muscle in that leg. But she refused to give up.

"It's better than dying," she growled aloud to herself, closing her eyes against the pain, "It's better than dying, it's better than dying. This is only temporary." She clenched her jaws to hold back a whimper. It hurt so much…

After what felt like an hour she-wolf had to stop digging; it hurt too much. She panted and let her paw rest limply on the cool ground. She noticed absently that her paws both felt wet, and looked down.

"Ah," the she-wolf stated impassively, examining the smudges and thick smears of blood mingling with the muddied dirt and snow. She looked at her injured paw and sighed.

The bloodied gouges caused by the metal teeth that were sunk into her leg- they were flecked with bloody dirt and mud. She shook her head and sighed, forehead creasing in worry, 'It will probably get infected.'

And at this rate, she'd probably chew threw her own leg more easily than this wretched trap. She'd escape then, but minus a limb. If she survived the blood-loss and infection, she'd still have great difficulty hunting properly. She might die either way.

Then she shook her head again, more firmly and narrowed her eyes, "I will not give up. There must be something I haven't thought of…" She looked around, spotted a pile of rocks at the base of the cliff to her right. She cocked her head.

'Maybe I can use a rock to push it open somehow…' she thought, and turned around so she could reach one with her hind paws.

One claw touched a piece of rock, and she dragged it closer with her toes. Several larger rocks tumbled down with a clatter. Once she could reach it with her teeth, the red wolf picked up her rock and tried wedging it between the gray metal jaws of the trap.

It caused another sharp burning throughout her leg and she moaned with pain and frustration. She tried again, resting her paw and the trap on the ground. It pulled the torn flesh of her leg again, and she shoved the rock further in, gritting her teeth.

It hurt, it Hurt, it HURT!

She yelped and pulled her paw away- just as she felt the trap loosen ever so slightly. The rock shot out and went flying. If this didn't work she might have to start on her leg after all.

The she-wolf sighed heavily and tried to reach the rock again. Her toes brushed against it, just as she heard an odd noise. A… clinking. Or jingling, like the horrible metal links. But it wasn't coming from the rock or metal, and it was a very _odd_ sounding-…

Oh no. She'd heard of this noise. In stories.

Stories about a ferocious monster who could and would kill anything. _Two_ monsters: a wolf and a ram.

The she-wolf looked up in horror, and spotted a large shape moving along the edge of the cliff far ahead. It was still far away, almost hidden by a few bare trees and brambles, but there was no mistaking the shape that was heading toward her.

It was larger than a wolf, with long thin legs, and a thick neck ending in a long head and blunt nose. Two long horns extended over the face, curving and pointed at the ends. At the front of the chest the faintest glimpse of a yellowish brown thing could be seen- that was where the jingling noise came from.

'At least I won't be killed by humans,' the she-wolf thought to herself grimly, 'Maybe the ram-monster will so ruin my hide that the humans will have no use for it when I'm dead.'

Then again, she thought with a tiny flicker of hope, maybe the creature hadn't seen her. Not yet at least. When it glanced away, at a bird flying out of a bush behind it, the she-wolf pulled her leg back and curled up flat on the ground. Hopefully the creature would mistake her for an old log or large stone.

The creature walked along the rim of the rocky cliff, closer and closer. The wolf struggled to keep her fur from bristling. No, it was too far away anyway. In fact, it was turning away, to the woods on its left. Maybe she still had time to dig or gnaw through this wretched stick!

The she-wolf dug with frenzied speed, doing her best to ignore the agony in her leg but couldn't. The brief moment of rest had lent new strength to the throbbing pain, and it filled almost the entire limb now. And it was so tired she could barely move it.

So the she-wolf planted her paw firmly on the ground- causing her to nearly topple over from pain and weakness- and dug and dug with her one good front paw. At the same time she resumed biting at the stick.

Her paws burning, her mouth full of splinters, her heart pounding, the she-wolf dug and bit and pulled as hard and fast as she could.

When she remembered the new reason for _why_ she was doing so, and looked up to see if it was gone, her heart nearly stopped. The creature was coming down the rocky slope right toward her!

**The she-wolf is very thoughtful and cautious, and a bit shy-ish. She's a wierd character. And yes, she _does_ refer to Chrin as 'the creature' alot, because he certainly doesn't look much like a sheep, and he looks like a goat but supposedly isn't. So what is he? Answer: I dunno. My theory is that his dad was a goat somehow, so maybe Chirin's some kind of hybrid or something.**


	3. Chapter 3

**WOOHOO, first review from Chironex27! Thank yoouu! You get a long chapter! (Thank you so much, Chironex27! I hadn't really thought about the mood of the film, though I tried to keep the details correct, like the snow at night, and the mountain. Thanks again, you're an amazing author and a very generous reviewer!)**

The she-wolf backed up with a gasp of horror and fear, then recalled the famed hatred of weakness that the creature and its wolf ally shared. She mustn't appear weak! She bared her teeth and narrowed her eyes.

Or maybe the dark wolf and goat-creature attacked animals they thought were strong, to challenge themselves… She didn't have time to puzzle it out, so went with the action that most wild creatures employed: hide weakness, scare off the enemy!

She bared her teeth in a vicious snarl, her snout creasing and her lips writhing above gleaming white fangs. Her ears she pressed back- not so much in anger as in fear. But these were easily mistaken for one another anyway.

The she-wolf lifted her tail and lashed it back and forth in feigned strength, instead of keeping it tucked down in fear as she felt like doing, and fluffed up her fur to look larger. She growled, trying to sound angry and confident.

The creature only came nearer, the dull yellow metal jingling softly at each step. It wasn't going away. The she-wolf's eyes widened in panicked fear, and she again narrowed them to show fierce aggression. She couldn't let the creature think she was scared!

Where was the other? A big black wolf always traveled with this goat-like creature, so said the stories about the killer-monsters.

The she-wolf's fur bristled even more as she tensed up and hunched her shoulders, drawing her legs closer together and turning her head frantically. Where was it? Maybe the legendary monsters had decided only _one_ was needed to kill their prey this time. Or maybe not; the wolf could be hiding nearby.

The huge goat-like creature stepped closer, slowly, and the she-wolf jerked away in fear, fur bristling like crazy. She growled louder and snapped her teeth at the monster, but not too close. Too close would probably provoke it just a bit too much, and leave her neck exposed as well.

This was torture, she decided. Why didn't it just kill her already, or simply walk away and leave her alone? An edge of real anger colored her growls now. It really was a monster if it was just trying to make her suffer before she died.

Did it and its wolf-ally do this with all their victims? Terrify them before killing them, dragging out the individual deaths? The she-wolf despised such unnecessary cruelty, and hoped she'd at least be able to wreak _some_ damage on this beast before it killed her.

It stepped closer yet, its sharp hooves just a few feet away from that wretched stick. The creature bent its neck to sniff at the wood for a second, then lifted its head slightly to look at the she-wolf.

She shrank away, keeping her head down, her tail lashing so low it brushed the snow from the ground. She snapped her teeth again at the creature, but she was shivering and the snap was weak and quiet- it didn't sound frightening at all.

The creature just watched her. She almost wished it would say something, even 'I'm going to kill you now'! Just so she'd know what to expect, just to end the terrible silence! Actually, she didn't even know if it _did_ speak. Maybe it only knew how to kill. If so, then she pitied it for the horrible pointlessness of its life.

The she-wolf opened her mouth to say something, then closed it again with a quiet click. She was as far away from the monster as she could get, the metal rings pulled tight and the metal teeth digging into her leg producing fresh agony.

'Better than being dead,' the she-wolf reminded herself, looking around to see if the second monster had materialized yet. She was hurting and scared, and didn't-

"What are you looking for?" The voice startled the she-wolf and she jumped, yelping as the trap dug deeper into her leg. She landed in a crouch and stared at the creature in shock. She was amazed that it'd spoken, but still afraid, and she tried to find her own voice.

"Watching. For the… the wolf, who travels with you," she managed to croak, shifting uncertainly on three paws. It hurt, so she leaned forward and down a bit, letting the metal rings slacken. It brought almost equally little relief.

At the word 'wolf,' the monster cringed and narrowed its eyes. The she-wolf drew back again, worried she might've angered the notoriously vicious creature. Maybe it thought she was more afraid of its ally, and now it felt insulted?

"He's… gone," the creature stated roughly. It could've been lying, but the thought still made the she-wolf relax slightly.

Only one murderous death-monster to fear right now, instead of two. Maybe he was on vacation, she thought almost deliriously. Oh hooray!

The creature lifted its head sharply at the she-wolf's movement, and she quickly pulled back even farther, hunching her shoulders over her head. She was shivering, and her tail curled between her hind legs almost involuntarily.

What kind of 'gone' had it meant? Gone as in 'he's dead'? And if so, who or what managed to kill him? Or had the monster meant "he's gone" as in 'he quit,' or 'he got caught by humans,' or 'we fought and I won and banished him'? She decided not to ask.

After a moment, the creature spoke again: "What are you doing?" The she-wolf tilted her head slightly, not sure what the creature meant. It gestured with one hoof at the trap, and the she-wolf quickly bent down, tucking the blood-coated paw against her chest as if she could hide the injury.

"I… didn't…" she stated hoarsely, "I- I can't…" She looked down and pulled as far away as she could, causing the trap to tighten and more blood to ooze from her leg. It dripped onto the snow, already marked and stained with muddy paw-prints and blood.

It felt like she was chained like a dog, only worse. There was no hiding the fact that she was weakened and tired and hurt and couldn't escape. The creature would have to be blind, stupid, and have no sense of smell to have not realized this. It could- _would_- kill her easily.

The she-wolf's shoulders drooped, and her tail hung limp, eyes dulling. She lowered her head and sighed. She'd lived a relatively good life, she supposed, not exceptionally long or full, but good enough.

"I can't get out," she stated softly, letting her trapped, blood-encrusted paw dangle near the ground. She tugged it to demonstrate, wincing at the pain as she sat down, "Are you going to kill me?"

The creature didn't respond, except to twitch one of its ears, and the she-wolf's own ears lowered. She took a breath, then asked cautiously, "If you could… after I'm dead, could you ruin my hide, please, so the humans can't take it?"

She looked up, resigned and hoping the monster would at least allow her this one request. Maybe she should've asked for it to make her death quick and painless. No, the small revenge on the humans would be more meaningful.

The creature lifted its head slightly, its eyes wide as though surprised by the she-wolf's appeal. This probably wasn't something it usually heard from its victims.

Finally it answered, a little stiffly: "…I'm not going to kill you."

The she-wolf tilted her head floppily to one side, extremely surprised, "Whaaat?" The creature shook its head, the mighty horns swishing through the air and making the she-wolf flinch.

"I'm- I'm through with killing," it declared, though hesitantly, as if it'd just decided this. It took a step forward, making the she-wolf cringe back again with a soft growl, and examined the metal links and the stick. She didn't believe it. Why would it try tricking her?

"You can't break this?" the creature asked, looking up to confirm the answer. The she-wolf, still uncertain, shook her head warily and shifted her injured leg. "Then _I'll_ try," the goat-like creature told her firmly, stepping closer.

The she-wolf tensed again, reddish fur bristling as she strained to pull away. But the creature walked right up to her, deadly hooves just inches from her paw and less than three feet from her face. The she-wolf growled softly, wary and afraid.

The creature _must_ be lying. Why _wouldn't_ it kill her? It'd killed countless other animals! But why bother pretending like this? Maybe it was attempting to be merciful- to kill her quickly when she wasn't expecting it. If so, she appreciated the effort, sort of.

The goat-like creature placed one front hoof on the lower crescent of metal teeth. The she-wolf watched nervously. Then the creature brought down its other hoof in a powerful blow, striking the other metal teeth at an angle. There was an earsplitting _CRACK_, and the jaws of the trap were wrenched apart!

With a slight gasp the she-wolf immediately dragged her leg out, her toe-pads scraping the teeth. She leapt up, paw held gingerly in the air.

Ahhhh, sweet relief! The horrible contraption no longer dragged her paw down, and no longer dug into her flesh, though thick blood still seeped from the burning wounds. The gray creature before her took its hooves off the trap, which scraped shut upon empty air.

He stepped away from the now harmless metal jaws and looked at the she-wolf, still standing on three legs. She smiled in amazement and gratitude, astonished that the fabled monster had freed her.

But why? Was it that he did not want to fight a trapped and helpless adversary? No, this creature and the black wolf would kill anything.

The she-wolf remained wary, but thought it'd be a good idea to thank him. Politeness was usually a given, when someone saved your _life_. No matter how bizarre the circumstances. So…

"Thank you," the she-wolf told him, dipping her head in thanks. This deadly creature had just saved her life, though she didn't know why. He easily could have killed her, or ignored her and traveled on.

The goat-like animal looked up from his examination of the trap and blinked, his expression blank, as if he didn't understand what she'd said. So the she-wolf repeated what she'd said, expanding on the thanks.

"Thank you for freeing me. And not killing me," she told him, "I owe you my life. Or, at least my limb. Heh." She gave a quick, awkward chuckle and glanced away, still not entirely convinced that the huge ram wouldn't kill her the instant she turned her back.


	4. Chapter 4

**Fourth chapter. January 9th. Must start writing more soon.**

The ram blinked again, frowning and looking slightly confused, "Umm. You're… welcome." It sounded as if he'd forgotten how to reply to thanks. The goat-like creature turned away and lowered his head again, sniffing absently at the snow.

"You were chasing an old female deer," he stated after a long moment of quiet, looking at the hoof-prints. The she-wolf nodded, and then in case he hadn't seen it, replied aloud, "Yes."

The goat-like creature shook his head, and the weird jingling noise started up again, "Shouldn't you have caught it by now, before even reaching this place?"

The wolf flicked her ears and glanced down, "Possibly. I was trying to tire her out." The ram snorted derisively, "Why?"

"I did it so I could kill her quickly once she stopped," the wolf answered firmly, feeling a twinge of defensiveness. Which was foolish, since she had bigger worries than having someone think that her hunting methods were strange.

"That doesn't make sense," the creature told her. The she-wolf's eyes narrowed and her ears flicked back for a moment before she changed the subject, "Why haven't you killed me?"

She was a little surprised to see the creature wilt slightly. "You still expect me to?" he asked, not looking at her, and sounding like he already knew the answer.

After a moment the she-wolf responded, uncertainty growing as she spoke, "I'm not sure. Y- your reputation is not one of, uh, showing kindness. Or of, um… sparing life." He didn't respond. The she-wolf continued, "But… you don't seem- that is… You don't look or sound like you want to kill me."

She wanted to say 'You seem sad,' but wasn't sure if that would offend him and make him want to kill her after all. So she remained quiet, waiting for a reply.

After another long moment, the ram nodded. He opened his mouth to speak after a few seconds, but then closed it and- to the she-wolf's astonishment- turned and began walking slowly away.

Confused and intrigued, perhaps foolishly so, she limped after him. The snow made soft crunching sounds beneath her paws, a sound she'd always loved. It was quiet enough now to not be annoying, but made enough sound that the goat-like creature knew she was following.

"Wait!" the young wolf gasped, freezing in place, "There could be more traps under this snow!" The ram stopped and turned his head to look at her critically.

"Are you afraid?" he asked, sounding almost stern. The she-wolf drew up her head, slightly offended, but answered, "A little. It's extremely painful. And I was trying to warn you, so you don't get stuck in any."

The goat-like creature gave an uncaring shrug. "If I do, I'll get myself out. And you too, if you get stuck again," he added as an afterthought. His tone sounded as though he thought she was stupid and he was being extremely generous to do another huge favor for her.

The she-wolf felt her lip curl in annoyance, but quickly suppressed it. She should not argue with the extremely-dangerous-creature who'd spared and saved her life but could still kill her. So instead she dipped her head slightly and told him just a little stiffly, "Thank you again for helping me."

"You're welcome," he responded, apparently benefiting from the practice he was getting. The she-wolf nodded, then cocked her head and reared up on her hind legs. She leaned her right front paw against a tree, and pulled down a small, dead branch with her teeth.

"Haf you nock fen thanked for enggything in a long tahyng?" she asked around the wood curiously, as she swept the branch back and forth through the snow in front of her. The goat-like animal looked back at her for a second and turned away again to keep walking.

"Yes," he answered finally, "Are you going to keep following me?" Now his tone was odd, slightly annoyed but also… something else. Not-annoyed.

The she-wolf thought about it and kept sweeping her branch through the snow, before answering, "_Fossi_flee." She dropped the branch, answered correctly, "_Possi_bly," and picked it up again.

The goat-like creature exhaled loudly and walked just a little faster, his head turned away, "Why?" "Fe-cause Ahy'ng curioush."

"Curious? About what?" Now there was an edge of bitterness in the ram's voice. The she-wolf shrugged and put down her branch again, "I'm not sure. Why you didn't kill me. Why you freed me. Who you are." She picked up the branch and hurried along at a limping trot.

The ram tossed his head with a quiet snort, "Maybe you're just nosy." "Thath's one worg hfor it," she agreed, thinking how strange it was to be having a conversation with the infamous monster who she'd thought would kill her.

The creature suddenly halted, and she jumped back, jaws tightening around the branch. Had he changed his mind? She might not have much of a running start, but maybe she could use the branch…

Slowly the ram turned around, his eyes wide, and stared at her. The she-wolf backed up a step. But what the gray creature next spoke surprised her more than she'd ever thought possible.

He asked, with astounded disbelief, as if he'd just found an answer to a huge mystery and didn't quite believe it, "Could you… _kill_ me?"

The she-wolf's jaw dropped and the branch fell to the ground. After a moment of stunned disbelief, staring back at him, she asked, "…WHAAAAT?"

"You could kill me, _couldn't_ _you?_" the goat-like animal insisted, walking closer. The she-wolf backed up, eyes wide and confused, "What? No, no, I mean, it's- well it's _possible_ but, highly unlikely and I, I don't-… I don't want to. No."

"Kill me!" the creature snapped, sounding angry. The she-wolf shook her head and stumbled backwards, picking up her branch again to ward him off if need be, "WHY?!"

The ram stopped, one hoof still held stiffly in the air as he ground out a reply, "Be-cause. I… killed... my mentor." He looked upset. The she-wolf frowned deeply, confused.

"I wasn't…" the creature continued, shaking his head back and forth harshly, "I wasn't strong enough to be a wolf and I killed him!" He was looking and sounding more and more frenzied now.

"That doesn't make sense!" the she-wolf snapped, scared and frustrated, and confused beyond belief, "And I'm not going to try killing you; you spared my life!"

The goat-like creature stalked closer, hooves jabbing into the snow with each step, "I _want_ you to do it! You can repay me by doing this for me. Kill me!"

"**NO!**" the she-wolf snapped, "Not until you start making sense, at least, and I get some answers!" The creature paused for a moment… and finally lowered his head, his entire body slumping.

"…Alright," he sighed heavily. The she-wolf let out a sigh of relief. "But why not?" the goat-like creature asked.

The she-wolf tilted her head thoughtfully. Honestly, ram would've tasted _delicious_ right about then, and she _was_ hungry and without any other available meal, but she did not want to attack this creature.

"Well for one thing you could still easily kill _me_," she explained, "If you change your mind or if you're an extremely good liar and just want a fight. But really, I don't want to kill you because you're so miserable and I want to help, you saved me, I'd like to know the reasoning for all this, and you're a bit of a legend."

A trace of a smile flickered across the sheep's expression, "A terrifying one." "Yes," the young wolf agreed seriously, "You and the wolf." He flinched and the she-wolf's eyes widened, "Was he the mentor you mentioned?"

"Yes. Wolf," the ram answered brusquely. The she-wolf frowned, "Are you saying 'wolf' to address me, or are you saying _he_ was a wolf, because I _know_ he-" "It's what I call- called him," the sheep interrupted stiffly, his voice rough.

"What, didn't he have a name?" she asked. "I don't know," the goat-like creature snapped, "He didn't tell me and I never asked."

He didn't sound regretful about never asking, more like he'd been fine just using the title of 'Wolf.' Like he almost hadn't wanted to know his mentor's name.

"Why?" the she-wolf asked tentatively, worried she might anger him. She was right. The sharp brown horns slashed through the air as the goat-like ram violently shook his head.

The she-wolf ducked her head and backed up a step in apology, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to be rude." She glanced up timidly, a peace offering, "…My name is Jihi."

The ram glared at her, his expression forming a slight sneer. Then he dropped his head a little and muttered quietly, "My name's Chirin."

Jihi smiled, and the sheep looked up with a puzzled frown: "What?" "Nothing, it's just… It's nice to know your name," Jihi admitted, quirking her mouth to the side in a grin. The ram looked at her blankly.

"Well, it makes you seem a bit less like a mysterious, terrifying legend," she explained, sugar-coating it a little and hoping she didn't offend him. He didn't look offended.

"And what do these legends say about me?" he asked, just a hint of amusement lightening his voice. This was good. The answer, though… might not be.

Jihi looked away and shifted her three good paws uneasily. "Ah, umm, well…" she began nervously, shying away a little, "They um, they say that you are the deadliest creature in this land." 'Besides humans,' she silently added.

"They say nothing can defeat you. And that… anyone who hears that ringing noise," she continued, pointing her damaged left paw at the yellow metal thing on the ram's chest and finishing quickly, "… sh-should hide quickly or they're doomed."

She'd been about to say 'will die before they have a chance to run,' but that was a bit too frightening and applied too closely to her situation right then. She'd also been about to tell of the myth that Chirin and the Wolf had joined forces because both were too strong to for the other to kill. But she knew now that wasn't true.

"I'd wondered what they said about me," Chirin mused, nodding. Oh yes, a murderer would love hearing what sort of things his terrified victims gossiped about him.

Jihi tried to suppress her instinctive animosity. This 'Chirin' _had_, after all, helped her and spared her life. Still, that didn't change that he'd killed countless others. For no reason.

That one thing slipped out before she could stop it: "Why _did_ you kill so many?" She gave the faintest gasp and clamped her jaws shut so she wouldn't ask anything else potentially dangerous.

Thankfully, the ram didn't look angry. Instead he gave a slight shrug, "The weak must die for others to live. That's the law of nature."

The she-wolf shook her head, "But you killed all sorts of creatures, prey and predators, weaker or stronger. And you didn't need to kill _anyone_! Goats- uh, sheep- oh whatever you are, they don't _eat_ meat!"

"Weelllll now I do," the goat-like ram told her carelessly, seeming bored as he looked around the woods. Jihi scrunched up her face and narrowed her eyes in an "eww" expression. Then she thought of something.

"But wait! You said you'd given up killing." "Yyyess," the sheep admitted reluctantly, as though thinking now that might've been a bad idea, "I meant…" "You meant, 'no more killing without the intent to eat'?" Jihi offered, and Chirin nodded.

"That's a little better… but you don't _have_ to eat meeaat!" Jihi insisted, half-yowling in exasperation.

She noticed that she tended to yell whenever the sheep said anything about his lifestyle. Which was understandable of her; the guy's life was disturbing!


	5. Chapter 5

**Okee-dokey, here I be! I'm trying to keep Chirin in-character, but it's hard.**

The she-wolf sighed and shook her head, "Maybe we need to wean you off of killing." The goat-like creature stomped a hoof sharply on the ground- causing the young huntress to flinch- and glared at her, "That would imply you don't intend to kill me."

Jihi shook her head, "I _don't_! You saved my life, and I'd like to think that since your life has been so- _unpleasant_, you should be given the chance to make the most of the rest of it."

She'd been about to say 'since your life has been so _pointless_,' but had stopped herself just in time. Again, she didn't want to get him angry at her. Angry Chirin= dead Jihi.

The ram shook his head, "I don't _want_ to! If the Wolf was still alive I'd… I'd go on killing with him." Jihi jaw-dropped and barely managed to contain her exasperated demand of '_WHYYY?!_' It was so stupidly pointless!

Were all males this stupid? Maybe just the goat-sheep ones with unconventional mentors. Or maybe just the adolescents. Was he an adolescent? Aack, who knew? The she-wolf shook her head, then frowned as she thought of something else.

"When- uhh, when did he die? There are still stories of you traveling together, so was it some time ago or-" "During the rainstorm," the ram interrupted harshly.

The she-wolf cocked her head and asked hesitantly, "Umm, which one? We haven't any really huge storms this year except for that large one this evening..." As Jihi caught sight of the ram's expression, her eyes widened.

She gaped at him, "The one from this evening?!" "Yes," Chirin stated. "I am so sorry," the young wolf breathed, stunned. She hadn't realized the legendary monster-wolf was so recently dead. Just a few hours ago?

"I- killed him," the ram ground out, flinching slightly, "I was too weak to kill the sheep, and I just- I didn't want _him_ to kill them. It h-happened so fast…" His voice broke and he trailed off, head lowering and shoulders shaking.

The she-wolf stared at him, this cold-blooded murderer who'd slaughtered countless other creatures, made their families suffer as he now suffered. She considered letting him stay like that, getting some little bit of payback for all his victims.

He deserved it. Deserved the pain and so much worse. And it was so tempting. Let him suffer… Or even kill him like he'd asked- But she couldn't. No, she wouldn't.

The she-wolf limped hesitantly forward, head down and ears back. She poked the creature's left side with her nose, feeling the thick, matted wool against her muzzle. The sheep stiffened for a second.

Jihi froze, but then cautiously pressed the right side of her snout and then her face against him. The thick wool was cold and damp and slightly squishy.

How could he feel anything through this thick mass? Bleh. It was probably a good defense against claws and teeth through.

The she-wolf rubbed her head up and down on Chirin's side and leaned against him. She remained wary and alert though, worried he might whirl around and impale her with his horns.

He shifted, and Jihi tensed worriedly. But all the ram did was slowly sink to the ground, his legs tucked beneath him. Jihi sat down beside him, glad of the chance to give her own limbs a rest. She stayed there, leaning against the ram, for some time before his trembling stopped.

"It was… at the barn, where I was born," the sheep mumbled quietly. Jihi frowned, "Wait… that's where his body is, right now?" "Yes."

"**Ohh**," Jihi bit her lip nervously, thinking. Chirin was mostly calmed down now; she didn't want to get him upset again. She thought for a moment and then told him, "Um, I think we should… uh… move it."

The ram made a strangled noise, "No. I don't want anyone seeing it, and I'm never going back there again." "You don't want anyone gawking at your mentor's corpse, I unerstand," Jihi agreed, unable to think of a way to soften her words. Chirin winced.

"Uhh, well," Jihi continued, "Then we should move it before the humans wake up and find it. They'll… It would be… _really_ bad." The sheep peered up at her with a confused frown. He had no clue what she meant, which was probably for the best.

"You wait here," she told him, feeling strange about telling this deadly monster of a creature to do anything. The ram tensed again, "What are you going to do?"

"I'm going to move your mentor's body into the forest," the she-wolf promised, "Where we can give him a respectful burial, if you want. It might… give you some closure, or something." Chirin didn't respond for a moment, and then slowly shook his head.

"You go," he murmured quietly, but then he lifted his head quickly, his eyes flashing, "But- don't you dare show any disrespect. He is- he was the strongest there ever was."

Jihi looked into his eyes and nodded solemnly, then began to limp away. She knew where this farm was.

On her way down the mountain, the she-wolf hoped to herself that 1: the snow had kept the humans from finding the wolf's corpse so far, and 2: that the snow would not keep _her_ from finding it.

If the humans found it first, they'd strip off the pelt and take it, or they'd throw the entire corpse away like garbage. True, the dead wolf was a notorious murderer who'd killed for no reason. But he must've also been a powerful and respected adversary.

It was difficult, nearly impossible, to see any good in some creatures. But Jihi still did her best to see it. With humans though, she didn't bother. To her, their killing was more pointless than Chirin's or the wolf's.

What the two had done was horrific and wrong, but they'd at least _thought-_ in some twisted way- they had some kind of reason for it. And they didn't hurt the land itself, at least.

Jihi stumbled down a steep slope, thick with snow. She wished she'd remembered to bring that stick, so she could check for traps.

Then again, this part of the mountain was extremely difficult to climb, especially for creatures without well-designed paws or hooves. So hopefully the humans had been too smart or too scared, and hadn't bothered setting any horrible traps here.

'Or who knows, maybe they just threw them,' she thought grimly to herself. Maybe they just threw the awful metal things onto the slope, and the traps would set themselves. Jihi hoped that it was only possible in her vivid imagination.

After a long time, during which the snow piled up to above her knees, the wolf came within sight of the farm. She shoved some snow out of her way and slunk under a broken piece of fence and looked around, spotting the barn.

Ugh, who would want to live in such a thing? The thought of being stuck in some cramped, smelly wooden box, made by humans... ugh! She wrinkled her nose in disgust and lifted her lips from her teeth, which gleamed like ivory and quickly iced up in the freezing wind.

Then she saw the huge, long lump in front of the barn. The wolf? How exactly had he died? What if he wasn't actually dead and got up and killed her?!

No, no, Jihi scolded herself, Chirin was familiar with death and knew the wolf was dead. And he must be dead, to be covered up with snow… Actually there was a slight stain visible in the whiteness of the snow-covered shape.

"It's blood," the she-wolf murmured quietly to herself. She wondered how the ram had killed him. In spite of her hatred and disgust for what this creature had done, she hoped he had died quickly, without too much pain.

That's how _she_ always tried to kill her prey: quickly, with the least suffering possible.

The she-wolf stepped carefully closer to the mound of snow. Her injured leg had been partially numbed by the freezing weather, so it didn't hurt too much.

A thought crossed her mind and she shivered, frowning deeply. If this creature had died during that rainstorm, hours ago, and gotten covered in snow, his corpse would be extremely stiff by now. That'd make it harder to move and to bury.

She heaved a sigh and began her work. Her paws brushed off the most recent layer of snow, and then another layer. She would deal with one problem at a time, and worry about the hardest part later. Yes, that would be it.

She tensed up though, when her paw-pads encountered fur. Seeing a dead member of her species was upsetting. But it'd be more upsetting if she left, knowing she'd left his remains to be desecrated by humans.

So she swallowed her distress the best she could, and kept digging, scraping off another patch of snow. A sudden loud noise made her jump back, bristling and ready to flee. The sound had been a gasp and had come from the barn, she realized, and she peered in that direction.

She saw the frightened face of a sheep quickly pulling back inside the barn, and heard a flurry of stumbling and thumping noises. Oh, of course, she thought with a derisive snort: the sheep all thought she'd come here to kill and eat them.

Actually, she realized, brightening, she could! She hadn't eaten in about two days, and she hadn't caught that female deer. It might be a while before she could hunt at full strength, and sheep- most- were SOOO easy to kill…

But no! Jihi shook her head rapidly and growled to herself. Chirin had ended his mentor's life and changed his own life to stop these creatures from being killed. So, she would not kill them. 'Grrrarrh,' she thought with a snarl, 'stupid sentimentality!'

She dug faster. Ohh, she could smell those sheeeep…! Delicious warm meeeaat… No! Besides, if these humans found out a wolf had killed even one of their wimpy livestock, they'd set more traps and go hunting for her and any other wild predator they could find.

Finally she cleared enough snow from the body to move it. Feeling more and more uncomfortable, she stepped hesitantly around the corpse, took its scruff in her teeth, and pulled.

"Arrr-r-r-rr-rrrhh," she grunted, straining and gritting her teeth. For one thing, this dead creature was huge, much bigger than her. Also, there was ice in the fur and anchoring the corpse to the ground under all that snow. Jihi snarled and dug at the ice, brushing fresh snow off as it fell thicker and thicker.

After a while she tried again. With a massive cracking-crunching noise, the dead wolf's body was torn free from the ice. Jihi let go and panted from exertion.

She had lost her prey, gotten caught in a trap and injured her leg, dug at said-trap for quite a while, climbed down a mountain on her injured leg, and dug at the ice on a dead murderer-wolf, all in one night.

She decided that she absolutely hated digging.

It took another long period of time for her to drag it all the way to the forest. The snow actually helped though.

It was heavy, wet, packing snow. So she smoothed it out and stamped down a path in it, almost like a ramp, which made pulling the dead creature easier.

Physically easier, not mentally easier. It still made her uncomfortable and a little freaked out.

She was out in a blizzard, on an empty stomach, _dragging_ the _corpse_ of one of her _own species_, who had _murdered_ countless creatures! She was doing this all after being caught in a trap, injuring her leg, and being freed by this murderer's ex-murderer apprentice!

_This_… was a very. Long. Night.

**Alrighty, what'd ya think? It's not over yet, just in case you were wondering. Also, I'd at first been going to have Chirin being all hard and reserved about the Wolf's death, but the Wolf HAD told him when he was little to let himself cry. So that's what I had him do.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Thank you SOOO much, Ada-Erika, for your review! It's incredibly kind and encouraging, and I'm _thrilled_ to hear from a fellow 'Ringing Bell' Fan! Hahaha, your reaction to finding it is so funny and I'm glad my story made you so happy. Thanks for the compliments, and I think your description of Jihi is very true. She _is_ rather cautious, but she has a silly side to her as well. Again, thank you so much!**

Weak sunlight was filling the thick clouds by the time Jihi had half-finished digging. Her claws burned, her legs all ached, and the injured one was bleeding heavily again.

The she-wolf huffed a tired sigh and lay down, resting her paws in a thick pile of clean white snow. This was to cool them down and numb them... so she could keep digging. It helped, but a meal and a good night's rest would've been much better long-term.

She sighed in relief as the cold, fresh snow eased the pain from her paws and wounded leg. Blood seeped into the snow, tinging it red around her injury. She hoped it'd be enough to ward off infection...

A muffled crunch made the she-wolf quickly look up, ears pricked and alert. A human or other predator would be a huge problem and danger right now. And, also unfair, seeing as she'd already done all this work and didn't want it to be for nothing.

Her eyes widened in surprise when she spotted the ram, Chirin, trudging through the forest of branches and thick snow towards her. The she-wolf relaxed a little, then flicked her dull reddish tail in greeting and stood up.

The ram, for his part, froze in his tracks at the sight of the dead black-furred wolf: his old mentor. Chirin stood rigidly, legs held straight and stiff, quivering.

Jihi wasn't sure what his reaction would be, after the shock. Hopefully it wouldn't be a complete mental break... That could be very dangerous for both of them. She flexed the toes of her injured paw; they ached, but the snow had helped numb the pain a little.

The sheep took a hesitant step forward, then another, staring at the dead wolf. He looked sad and almost scared of it. After a moment, during which Jihi's paws felt well enough to dig again, or to run, the ram lowered his head.

"I'm sorry," he whispered hoarsely to his deceased mentor, stretching out his snout to almost touch the cold, snow-covered shoulder.

Then he shivered and stepped quickly back, looking away. Jihi got up and slowly resumed digging, keeping an eye on Chirin all the while, just in case.

After a few moments he slowly approached. She looked up at him warily, but he didn't seem to notice her. He bent down and lightly scraped at the ground with a front hoof, dragging it across the dirt.

It didn't look like digging. The sheep dragged his hoof limply across the ground, kind of slowly pawing at it. His eyes were closed, and Jihi pricked her ears as she heard him mumbling something to himself.

It was something about a bird's nest and a snake. The she-wolf cocked her head but didn't say anything. It wasn't really her place to intrude.

The ram closed his eyes tighter and began scraping at the frozen earth harder. Then he alternated between the right and left hooves, scraping and then shoveling the dirt out of the hole. Jihi resumed her digging, but quietly and over to one side so as not to get in his way.

She noticed the ram had tears glittering around his eyes, but again she didn't say anything. This old wolf had apparently been all he had. It must have been a very sad life.

The digging took much less time than Jihi'd expected, and they soon finished digging the grave. Jihi glanced at the stiff corpse, and Chirin backed away. So the she-wolf trudged over and, with great effort, dragged the frozen, heavy body into the hole.

She'd never had to give a member of her species a funeral or burial before, and wasn't quite sure what to do. She just watched Chirin carefully, making sure he didn't get too upset, and then slowly pushed a little dirt onto the cold black fur.

She still wasn't sure if Chirin would get freaked out by it, and glanced at him to check. He was shivering a little, and his eyes were wide. Jihi pushed another small mound of soil over the dead wolf and checked again. The ram didn't say anything, just kept watching.

The she-wolf kept shoveling dirt into the grave until the burial place was completely covered. It looked like just a mound of dirt now. A very large mound; the old wolf must've been enormous in life.

But no longer. A dusting of snowflakes were already settling upon it in a thin silvery veil.

The she-wolf nervously cleared her throat and addressed the mound, "The legends tell of you as a great and terrifying adversary. I never knew you, but, you have my respect. And, thanks, for raising Chirin."

A glance at Chirin showed that he seemed a little less tense. "I'll miss you," he stated quietly to his old mentor, "You were my teacher, and the greatest there ever was. You taught me to be strong. I came... I came to see you as a father. I'm so sorry I wasn't strong enough."

The young ram bowed his head, shivering slightly, and Jihi whimpered softly in sympathy. What had his life been like? It wouldn't be much longer, the she-wolf knew, if he stayed out in the frigid cold like this.

He was probably burned out, as much as- if not _more_ than- Jihi. Certainly he was more exhausted emotionally. The she-wolf looked at him sympathetically and walked closer slowly, so as not to startle him.

"Would you like to rest?" she asked, feeling very tired herself. The goat-like creature eyed her warily. Jihi shook her head and tried not to smirk, "No, not being dead, I really do mean _actual_ sleep."

The ram's tensed shoulders slumped, whether from relief or disappointment Jihi didn't know, and he nodded.

She smiled and led the way to a shallow cave she'd found in the rocky mountain face. Along the way she glanced up at the trees and sky. The snow showed no signs of stopping.

In this heavy snow and sudden cold, the tree limbs would be in danger of breaking and falling. She decided to wait and see. Tomorrow she'd see how it looked, and go from there.

She smiled at the sight of the cave. About a third of it was a large, shallow overhang in the rock, able to keep one safe from falling branches. A couple already-fallen dead trees made a decent roof and partial walls, which kept out most of the wind and some of the snow.

Chirin crawled in almost immediately and sank down onto his hooves with a soft thump. He looked utterly exhausted. Jihi slid in next to him, her side not quite touching his. She was still nervous and worried he might kill her in her sleep.

Long moments passed, during which neither of them slept, but remained awake and shivering a little. Jihi turned her head to look at the ram. His head was on the ground and he was gazing out at the snowy forest with a sad, empty look in his eyes.

Sad and lonely and lost. Looking like this, it was easy to imagine him as young and defenseless, instead of a hardened killer.

The thought made Jihi's fur bristle faintly, but she reminded herself that the ram had been through alot and wasn't going to hurt her. He looked so tired of everything, and practically begged her to put him out of his misery.

The she-wolf held back a sympathetic whine and slowly leaned her right side against him. She wasn't going to let him give up like that. After a moment he leaned his left side against her, and both took comfort in the extra warmth.

Jihi relaxed a little and, in a quiet voice, began to sing gently.

"_Chiilld_ of the _wiiill_derness… _boorrn_ iinnto _emmmp_tiness…" It was a song her parents had taught her and her siblings. It was a sad, wistful song, to help them feel better if they were ever alone.

"Leeaaarrned _tooo_ be _lone_lyyy… Leearrned to _find,_ your, _way,_ in _daark_nesss… whooo _will_ be _therrre_ for you…" Chirin raised his head a little to look at her.

The she-wolf continued carefully. She'd changed 'learn' to 'learned,' so it was more hopeful. This way it sounded like a childhood experience to be mourned, instead of something one would have to keep learning.

"_Com_foorrt and _caaarre_ for you… _Leeaarrn_ _to_ be lonelyyy… Leeaarn to _be_, your, _one_, com_pan_nion…" The music of it was quiet and soothing. Jihi felt a gentle smile on her face.

"Never _dreamed_, _oouut_ in the _wooorrld_… there were _aarrms_ to _hold_ yyoou… You've aaallwaa-aays knowwnn… your _heart_ was _oonn_, _iit's_, _oowwwnn…!_" Her voice rose in a soft, melodic howl.

Chirin lowered his head and shifted around a little, settling down to rest. His ears remained slightly pricked though, listening to the she-wolf sing. After a few moments he drifted off to sleep.

Jihi sang the last few verses very quietly, so as not to wake Chirin, but also because she herself was extremely tired. She lay her head down, yawned, and snuggled in next to her new friend.

Well, not quite friend, not yet. But an ally, maybe. The she-wolf's eyes drooped closed, and she let them stay that way.

She had no idea what tomorrow would bring. For now though, she was warm, tired, and felt mostly safe. In a few moments, she too, was asleep, right next to Chirin.

**Hmm. So far most of this story I'd already written. Now I've run out of pre-written stuff and will have to improvise and make it up as I go along. Updates may be less frequent, but I'll do my best to keep it going. Oh, also the song is from the end of the 'Phantom of the Opera' movie, which I do not own. I don't own that, the song, or Ringing Bell. I DO own my character Jihi, though.**


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